Lo informal: Habaneros In-Between System and Struggle: Navigating Cuba´s Economy as a Möbius Strip

Abstract

Since the fall of the Berlin Wall, Cuba's economy has been virtually at a standstill, trapped in a persistent state of stagnation following the loss of subsidies from the Eastern Bloc. Without subsidies from the Soviet Union, new economic dynamics, such as global tourism and digitalization, have played a decisive role in shaping the population's economic practices in contemporary times. Scarcity has been an ongoing reality for many Cubans, and for the younger generation, profound shortages has characterized their entire lives. When the Covid- 19 pandemic halted tourism overnight, the already weak formal system was further weakened, and the economic downturn reached a boiling point that reinforced the social and economic stratification of the island. Through ethnographic fieldwork in Havana, this study explores how habaneros in different social positions find ways to survive and secure social mobility when inflation has reached historic heights and over 10% of the population has left the country. The study argues for understanding Cuba's economy as a duality of formal and informal sectors—a "Möbius strip" of intertwined and dependent structures where the distinction between legal and illegal often becomes blurred and where informal networks become essential for covering basic needs. The ethnography seeks to understand how Cubans navigate the economic duality between formal and informal sectors to survive in a society characterized by persistent economic scarcity. The research questions include: How do Cubans use informal economic practices to meet daily needs? What role do social networks play in the distribution of resources? And how does digital development affect Cubans' economic adjustment strategies? Through detailed ethnographic descriptions, and in dialogue with theoretical approaches, this study shows how Cubans with different backgrounds, based on their position in the labor market, continuously navigate a challenging economic landscape through adaptation, either by pilferage of state resources, touristic encounters, or technological innovations.